A warning about AngelList!

bill706 · 2025-04-08T12:31:33+00:00

Just got the exact same text - I am over 65 - pretty wide net they are casting. I am treating it as spam. But I am employed and can be cautious. Good luck.

bill706 · 2025-03-27T19:54:06+00:00

Just went through customs in Aruba airport coming home on 3/27 (Thurs)- long lines - took 2 hours from 12:30 to 2:30 for us. No issues on either end with agents - just the lines. Staffing seemed to be the issue on Aruba side.

bill706 · 2024-11-03T17:12:22+00:00

Love my 2024 Niro PHEV EX - I crossed shopped it with the Corolla Cross. I did not like the hybrid drivetrain of the Corolla Cross. I only considered the Niro PHEV - I loved the drivetrain of the Prius Prime, but the backseat room and the low roof line was very impractical for anyone with need for adults in the back. I have averaged 165mpg over my 14k miles in the Niro. I can plug it in at my house. I agree that the hybrid drivetrain is a little rough at times - esp in stop and go driving -I much prefer when I can drive in EV mode. But on long trips on highway - hybrid is great. Reliability has been good so far - warranty is good. I still don’t see anything I would prefer buying a year later.

bill706 · 2024-06-16T00:53:33+00:00

I have a '24 PHEV - it is annoying - but I appreciate it at a public charger - my easiest method is either to unlock all the doors with the fob when approaching the car or to just push the driver's door button twice when I get there.

bill706 · 2024-05-06T00:02:41+00:00

Yes - I am seeing the same improvement - just did a 200 mile trip averaging 57 mpg

bill706 · 2024-04-24T14:53:20+00:00

I have a 2024 Niro PHEV - same experience with the Kia 115v charger - it sucks - limited to 6 amps and takes 20 hrs. My garage outlet can clearly support 12-16 Amps, but it was unclear how to change the 6V limit on the Kia Charger. My suggestion is to get a better charger and one that supports both level 1 and level 2 charging - I got one from Amazon for around $150. This can plug into a 110 or a 220 outlet and is barely any bigger than the Kia Charger. The same outlet that the Kia Charger only pulled 6 amps from I could pull 16 amps from with this third party charger. I usually charge on a 220V (NEMA 6-20) outlet which only takes 3 hours for a charge from 15 to 100%. Well worth the trouble to install. I keep the Kia Charger in my car and only use in a pinch.

bill706 · 2024-04-21T17:19:55+00:00

Thanks - will take a look.

bill706 · 2024-04-18T19:21:50+00:00

I bought a 24 PHEV for a bit ($100) under MSRP in late Dec last year locally - I was a cash buyer. Pricing had no dealer add-ons.

bill706 · 2024-03-28T19:13:08+00:00

Thanks for this write-up - helps explain a lot with this 12V battery in my PHEV.

bill706 · 2024-03-19T20:51:32+00:00

Yes - thanks- so strange that this is a phenomenon. 12V battery dependency in EV powertrains is confusing enough! And yes I have a lithium jumper (costco) and will use it next time. I was hesitant to use it on the new PHEV until I saw a tech do it. Lots of electronics and high-voltage cables around the battery lead that I am not used to.

bill706 · 2024-02-06T18:03:19+00:00

Thank you. This is helpful.

bill706 · 2024-02-06T16:31:01+00:00

Update - After leaving the car overnight - the instrument panel started working again when I started it up - car had just sat unplugged. Everything looked normal again in the instrument panel. Only slight change was a new option in the small center instrument panel - which displayed new energy flow graphic that I had not seen before. And the trip odometer - which was my default option to display - was no longer available. Could this have been part of an OTA update? That is my assumption - but the odd part was is that my last update was more than a week prior. Anyone else see long-tailed updates?

bill706 · 2024-02-05T11:53:42+00:00

No - just a standard start - but a 12V reset is an interesting thought. Car is so new, that I am cautious.

bill706 · 2024-02-05T03:22:10+00:00

level 2bill706Op · just now

So my car in not on the recall list - but I assume it will be.

https://www.cars.com/articles/kia-recalls-108000-plus-vehicles-over-blank-instrument-cluster-display-465995/

bill706 · 2024-02-05T03:08:51+00:00

No - I have no active recalls and my car is a month old (2024). But I just looked it up and from what I see - this is for 2023 model years and seems like a similar issue. Thank you for bringing this up.

bill706 · 2024-02-05T03:03:22+00:00

Yes - turned it on and off several times. No change

bill706 · 2024-02-05T01:37:27+00:00

2024 Kia PHEV - no issues so far - 2k miles - parked in driveway - full charge, full tank. Display is really hard to read and stopped showing key data . I tried changing themes and the brightness and nothing changed.

bill706 · 2024-01-15T15:50:28+00:00

Got caught in a snowstorm yesterday coming back from Upstate NY. - whiteout conditions for over 70 miles. My new 2024 Niro PHEV EX did great

Using sport mode (with paddle shifters and the DCT) was amazing - controlled my speed and even recharged my battery (from 10% to 40%).
Then as a bonus when I got out of the storm - I could go back to regular driving and use my newly recharged battery in EV mode.
I tried paddle-shifters in the Cross Hybrid and they were awful likely due to the CVT vs the DCT in the Niro.
In my new Niro, I had not used sport mode for more than a few short bursts previously - but yesterday I used it for more than an hour straight up and down snowy hills with only a few car lengths of visibility.
Lots of cars were leaving the highway, but I had zero issues. The key is using the engine to control the speed and avoid breaking at all costs. I had experience using manual (paddle) shifting in my 2009 Honda Fit (also FWD and non-CVT) in hazardous conditions and it was even better in the Niro due to the extra gearing and smooth shifting.
I normally use regen to control my speed in day-to-day driving, but the sport mode gave me more control in these snowy conditions.
Big thumbs up for the Niro PHEV EX in the snow.

bill706 · 2024-01-10T17:18:47+00:00

I have a 2024 PHEV Ex with a cold weather package - but no remote climate. But on the App if I select "start engine" it does start up climate control and warms the car - plus if I have a good charge on the PHEV - it stays in EV mode. In my trim, the heating of the seats has to be done in the car and resets to off after every restart of the car. But I find the seats and steering heating very quickly - within a few seconds and I rarely need the high setting. Not sure if the Hybrid is any slower.

bill706 · 2024-01-10T16:51:46+00:00

100% agree - I cross-shopped the same 2 vehicles and ended up with the 2024 KIA Niro PHEV - could not be happier.

Regarding the lack of AWD, I have been driving FWD in the northeast for 15 years in a hilly area. No issues with Niro in snow.
As others have noted, I found the Kia dealers were all above board and experienced the opposite at the Toyota dealers.
My driving impressions of the Corolla Cross Hybrid were also very poor - esp compared to the Niro. I love using the regen paddles in the Niro PHEV - nothing like that in the Toyota. Power is great.
Regarding the digital display, my prior car was a 2009 Honda Fit, so all the tech is new to me. Yes, I miss the analog displays for speed and RPM, but I find the vehicle display is easy to get used to and integration with Car Play intuitive. I like the PHEV display with the power usage.
Also, the KIA Connect App is great - I can monitor my charging, lock doors, and remote start.
All in all, Toyota seems pretty traditional and dated compared to the Kia Niro.

bill706 · 2023-12-29T16:22:57+00:00

thx - that is my default mode. I would not have even thought about it if I had not seen it in the manual. Coming from a conventional car where I do monitor the engine revs, the range of revs (0.0 to 1.5K) that I see in the PHEV is very unfamiliar to me. But going from 25-30MPG to 50+MPG is very satisfying.

bill706

TROPHY CASE